


Nobody But You

by lookingforthestars



Category: Runaways (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, With a small dash of angst and anxious Gert, basically pure fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-26
Updated: 2020-02-26
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:02:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22903651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lookingforthestars/pseuds/lookingforthestars
Summary: Gert tries to tell Chase she loves him. It doesn't go according to plan.
Relationships: Chase Stein/Gertrude Yorkes
Comments: 7
Kudos: 74





	Nobody But You

Gert is now That Girl.

It’s fine, she’s leaning into it. If Molly or anyone else had come to her with this problem a year ago, Gert would have laughed right in their face and launched into a rant about how being sappy was for girls with no identity outside of their relationships.

In hindsight, she was probably a _little_ bitter.

She is now the girl she used to mock, and it’s all Chase’s fault. He made her that way by being charming and illegally gorgeous and doing the thing that she doesn’t think about too much, if she can help it, because it makes her head spin and her stomach hurt. He’s always had a way of slipping past her defenses, and she would hate him for it if it didn’t feel so good.

But there’s one wall he hasn’t knocked down, even though he’s very close. Because it’s extremely hard to hear Chase say _I love you_ and not immediately spill her guts all over the floor. Not tell him about all the little moments where she saw _him_ , the times she knew she should hate him but just ended up pining after him sadly, the dozens of possible futures she pictured with him.

The wall is so cracked that Gert knows it’s going to come down soon, so she might as well figure out how.

She wants it to be perfect. Because it was perfect, the first time he said it. Okay, maybe not perfect – she rejected him, which put a damper on things – but she’ll never forget his words or his face or how _badly_ she wanted to give in to him. Now that they’re Chert again (he still hates that name, which is ninety percent of the reason she uses it), she lets herself enjoy the words instead of burying them deep.

Chase is always a little cautious when he says it, like he still doesn’t know if it will make her uncomfortable, if she’ll spiral and deflect and change the topic. But the full, embarrassing truth is that she loves hearing him say it. The words make her heart beat a million miles a minute, make her feel safe, make her feel like she could take on the entire world and win. And while she’s pretty sure Chase will keep saying it forever even if she doesn’t reciprocate, it seems unfair to deny him those same feelings, especially when it’s the truth.

It’s almost _obnoxious_ how in love with him she is.

They’re alone, finally, because Molly chose Monopoly for game night and they played for five hours. It’s hard to break the habit of spending nights in at the Hostel, even though they’re not wanted for murder and can go anywhere they want. The outside world still feels overwhelming after they’ve been hidden away for so long, so they’re easing into it. It’s sort of like Plato’s allegory of the cave…

“What are you thinking about?” Chase murmurs, stroking his fingers lightly up and down her arm. Right, she was on a mission before she got lost in her thoughts. Gert’s Brain – 1, Gert – 0, as usual.

“A lot of things,” she says, because blurting out _Monopoly and_ _caves_ probably won’t make much sense. “And, um…”

This is a perfect moment, right? They’re cuddled up in bed, her head on his chest, and she can hear Chase’s slow and even breathing which is going to lull her to sleep if she’s not careful. Yes, okay, this is a perfect moment.

“Mostly I’m thinking about…you.” He doesn’t interrupt, giving her time to collect her thoughts, and she’s grateful that he knows her so well. She’s quiet for a moment – she needs to lead up to this, it’s been years in the making, she can’t just spit it out. “And how I should have said this, like…I don’t know, forever ago, probably. I’m sorry it’s taken me so long, but I really want you to know that-.”

Her words are drowned out by a snore, because Chase is suddenly fast asleep, his hand slack on her shoulder. There goes her perfect moment.

Gert huffs a sigh of frustration. “Good night, you idiot,” she whispers before snuggling into her comatose boyfriend.

* * *

Wow. Gert is _thirsty_.

It’s not her fault, okay? She can hardly be responsible for her actions when Chase walks into the bedroom – their bedroom, again, finally – shirtless and wet from the shower. Gert wonders if he purposefully refuses to dry off in the bathroom just to screw with her.

“What?” Chase asks innocently, even though she can tell by his smirk that he knows exactly _what_. She’s pretty sure her face is tomato red and her pulse is racing. This is stupid – Gert has seen him shirtless dozens of times at this point, maybe hundreds, plus a whole lot more than his chest, why is she still affected like this?

Because her boyfriend is the hottest person on earth, maybe.

“I hate you,” she mutters, and it couldn’t be less venomous if she tried.

Chase chuckles, grabbing his comb off the dresser and going to work on his hair. Gert timed him once – eight minutes. “Consider it payback for all the times I have to see _you_ come out of the shower.”

“Oh, please,” Gert says emphatically. “I do not look like _that_ when I get out of the shower.” Like there’s anything remotely sexy about her tangled hair plastered against her skin or how tightly she holds onto the towel because she’s still not exactly the type to walk around naked with confidence.

He has the same look he always gives her when he disagrees with something she says, and god, his stupid gorgeous face is so annoying. “I’m pretty sure you’re never going to believe me, but let it not be because I didn’t try.” Chase leans down, planting his hands on either side of her on the mattress, getting as close as he can while still allowing Gert to see him properly. “You, Gert Yorkes, are hot as hell, and my attraction to you is out of control.”

She bites her lip, flushing from head to toe. He’s right, it’s hard to believe – but _oh god_ , if anyone could make her believe it, it’s him. Of course, Gert wants him to respect her for her intelligence and determination and a hundred other qualities that have nothing to do with her appearance, but she’s not insecure about those things. She is insecure about her looks, because she’s so wildly attracted to Chase that she can’t help but wonder if he feels the same, and she loves him for trying to reassure her.

“Chase?” Geez, her voice is so breathy, but his pupils dilate, and it doesn’t seem like he minds. “I-.”

The door swings open, and Molly immediately claps a hand over her eyes. “Sorry! Should’ve knocked! My bad! Just came to ask for a ride! I’ll wait downstairs!”

Gert flops back on the bed.

* * *

They’re making out, and it’s awesome. She and Chase are, like, really good at this. It’s not as heated as they can get, because Molly is making dinner downstairs and if they escalate this any further, they’re just going to be interrupted by a superpowered teen yelling at them to come eat spaghetti.

His hand travels up her thigh and Gert shivers a little, his shirt balled up in her fists as he presses kisses to her neck. “I love you,” he murmurs against her skin – or at least, she thinks he does, because her head is pretty fuzzy and she might have misheard him.

She can say it, even if he didn’t, right? Except Gert can’t do it, not like this, can’t be physically and emotionally vulnerable at the same time. It’s too much. She doesn’t want him to chalk it up to a hormonal haze, or think that she felt pressured because he said it, or-.

“What’s wrong?” Chase pulls back, brushing her hair away from her face as he looks down at her with concern. Oh, great, she’s ruined this. Way to go, Gert.

“Nothing,” she says quickly, because she can tell he’s worried. “Sorry, I just got in my head. It was nothing you did.”

Nothing he did wrong, at least. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Gert shakes her head. “Not right now. I’ll let you know if I need to. I’m sorry, Chase, I didn’t mean to…”

His expression softens. “You don’t have to apologize. It’s okay. Do you want to do something else?”

The mood is officially dead, and they’ll be dragged out of the room soon enough, so there’s no point trying to get back to where they were. “Can we maybe just stay here until dinner?”

Chase nods, rolling onto his side and pulling her into his chest. Gert tucks her head under his chin, wondering if she’ll ever be able to tell Chase how she feels. If she’s even capable.

* * *

“Do you believe in soulmates?”

Gert almost laughs, but thinks better of it. Chase is staring up at the sky, his hand wrapped around hers over the blanket they’ve set up outside the Hostel to stargaze. Even with the light pollution from the city below them, it’s a beautiful night.

“I don’t know. I don’t think I believe in destiny, and all that. But I guess there could be one person you love so much that no one else could ever measure up.” The silence that follows is too unnerving, so she tilts her head to the side and smirks at Chase. “When I find them, I’ll let you know.”

He grins back, his dimples on full display. She loves his smile. It’s hard to find anything she doesn’t love about Chase Stein, actually. She even loves the things she thinks would annoy her in anyone else, like his terrible taste in movies and the way he always mispronounces “misogyny.”

“I think you might be my soulmate,” he says quietly but clearly. There’s no doubt in his voice. Gert feels like she’s crashing through the ground. “I mean, growing up, it was always you. And clearly, I never moved on after…” He trails off, sounding wistful. “If there is such a thing as soulmates, I can’t imagine mine being anyone but you.”

Gert can’t breathe. She rolls over and props herself up on her elbows, allowing herself to take him in – as beautiful as his lashes and lips and jaw and everything else about him is, nothing compares to the affection in his eyes when he looks at her. She never thought she was worth being looked at like that. She still doesn’t, but she accepts that it doesn’t need to make sense. Sometimes love doesn’t make sense – that doesn’t make it any less powerful. “Chase, I l-.”

“Gross, Lace!” Chase suddenly groans, staring down somewhere by his feet. Gert completely forgot about her dinosaur – whoops – but Old Lace looks absolutely delighted with herself. Then she spots the dead bird lying mangled on the edge of the blanket and Chase’s reaction makes more sense.

“Lacey, did you bring us a snack?” She _feels_ the dinosaur’s pride and can’t help but smile. Old Lace might have terrible timing and some very unappealing dietary habits, but it’s pretty adorable how much she loves Chase. Gert’s not sure if it’s a projection of her own feelings, or if Chase is just a hard person not to fall in love with. “Good girl.”

“Yeah,” Chase says, still clearly grossed out by the bird corpse in his immediate vicinity. He reaches out, rubbing Old Lace’s nose, and Lace lets out a growl that sounds like a purr. “Good girl.”

* * *

Gert feels like she’s dying.

They gave her antibiotics at the hospital – it’s super nice to be able to see a doctor without fear of getting arrested for murder, now – but they’re taking forever to kick in and Gert has already been nauseated for three straight days.

Chase is quiet on the car ride home, and Gert thinks she knows why. “Are you mad at me?”

His eyes go wide, and he shoots her a surprised look before remembering to keep his eyes on the road. “What?”

“The hospital, the medicine, I mean…” Her stomach lurches again, but she forces it down. This is important. “It’s only natural you would think about me sneaking out for my anxiety meds and your mom and…all of that.”

Chase’s jaw clenches. Well, if he wasn’t thinking about it before, he is now. So that was a smart move. “That wasn’t the first bad experience I’ve had at a hospital, Gert.”

Oh. Right. “I’m sorry, I’m an idiot,” she sighs, leaning back against the headrest. She hates thinking about Chase as a little kid, sitting scared in an emergency room and being forced to lie about what happened to him. It makes her blood boil. It makes her hate herself for not seeing the truth earlier. “I shouldn’t have even asked you to drive me. I could have asked Nico or Alex, or…”

“Gert, you’re sick. I would be an asshole not to drive you.” He reaches out, taking her hand across the console. “I love you. I want to take care of you. It comes with the territory, okay?”

This isn’t really how she pictured it, but she wants him to know. The words are on the tip of her tongue, until something else beats her to it. “Oh god, pull over.”

Fortunately, they’re on a side street with a wide shoulder, so Chase stops the car immediately. Not a second too soon, as Gert opens the door and throws up onto the grass.

At this point, Gert is starting to wonder if it’s a sign from the universe.

* * *

Chase is gone when she wakes up, and Gert pads downstairs to find him opening and closing the kitchen cabinets, pausing periodically to scribble on a notepad. “Hey,” he smiles when he notices her. “Grocery run later. Did you like that ice cream with the brownie bites or the caramel one better?”

He spoils her – spoils all of them. He’s so thoughtful about things she never even considers, and maybe he’s not perfect, but damn if the world couldn’t use more people like him. “I love you.”

Chase blinks, looking stunned, like Gert just punched him square in the face. “Wait, am I dreaming right now?”

“Nope.” Her cheeks are hot, because this is basically the opposite of how she saw this going, but Chase breaks into the widest grin she’s ever seen, and she doesn’t regret it at all. “I was trying to tell you in some really great romantic way, but…it doesn’t matter. It’s true. I love you.”

His face lights up like July Fourth fireworks. “It’s perfect. Perfectly you.” Chase pulls her into a hug, and she can still hear the smile in his voice when he says, “I love you so much, Gert.”

She probably shouldn’t have worried so much. Because it’s _Chase_. And he makes even the dumbest things feel perfect.


End file.
